The Dormition of the Theotokos

Celebrated on August 15 (August 28)

The Feast of the Dormition or FallingAsleep of the Theotokos
commemorates the death, resurrection, and glorification of Christ's
mother. To help us in our preparation of the feast, it is preceded
by a two week fast. As with the Nativity of the Virgin (September
8/21) and the feast of her Entrance to the Temple (November
21/December 4), the Feast of the Dormition also comes from the
Tradition of the Church.

There we learn that Mary died as all people die because she had
a mortal human nature affected by the corruption of this world.
The Church proclaims that Mary needed to be saved by Christ just
as all of us are saved from trials, sufferings, and death of this
world. Having truly died, she was raised by her Son as the "Mother
of Life" and already participates in the eternal life of
paradise which is prepared and promised to all who "hear
the word of God and keep it." (Luke 11:27-28) Finally, we
celebrate the fact that what happens to Mary happens to all who
imitate her holy life of humility, obedience and love.

It is important to remember that there are no relics of the Theotokos.
Their existence has never been mentioned throughout history. At
one time in Constantinople there was a center of pilgrimage where
the belt and veil of the Virgin were venerated.

From the Tradition of the Church

Following the day of Pentecost, the Theotokos remained in the
city of Jerusalem, comforting the infant Christian community.
She was living in the house of the beloved Apostle John, later
the Evangelist. At the time of her death (tradition states she
was in her early fifties) many of the Apostles were scattered
throughout the world preaching the Gospel. All but Thomas were
miraculously brought to the Virgin aloft on clouds.

As they stood around her bedside, she commended her spirit to
the Lord and Jesus descended from Heaven, taking up her soul in
His arms. The Apostles sang the funeral hymns in her honor and
carried her body to a tomb in Cedron near Gethsemane. When a Jewish
man tried to interrupt their solemn procession, an angel of the
Lord came and punished him by cutting off his hands, which were
later healed.

The Apostle Thomas arrived on the third day and wished to see
the Virgin for the last time. They discovered an empty tomb. Church
tradition relates that the Theotokos was resurrected bodily and
taken to heaven, the same reward that awaits all the righteous
on the Last Day.

About the Icon

The Theotokos is depicted upon the funeral bier.

Christ, standing behind the Theotokos, is her Son, Who has come
to receive His Mother's soul into heaven; He holds in His left
arm an infant in white, symbolizing the soul of the Theotokos
reborn in her glory in heaven; Christ also is robed in white and
appears in an aureole (elongated halo) depicting the Light of
His Divinity.

The Apostles are depicted on either side of the bier stand the
Apostles; the group on the left is led by St. Peter who stands
at the head of the bier; the group on the right is led by St.
Paul who stands at the foot of the bier.

Below the bier is a figure of Antonius the Jew, who tried to disrupt
the procession, was punished, but later repented of his sins and
embraced Christianity through Baptism.

Troparion (Tone 1)

In giving birth, you preserved your virginity!
In falling asleep you did not forsake the world, O Theotokos!
You were translated to life, O Mother of Life,
And by your prayers you deliver our souls from death!

Kontakion (Tone 2)

Neither the tomb, nor death, could hold the Theotokos,
Who is constant in prayer and our firm hope in her intercessions.
For being the Mother of Life,
She was translated to life by the One who dwelt in her virginal
womb!

Terminology

Theotokos "God-bearer", "Mother of God"

Aiparthenos "ever-virgin"

Panagia "all holy"

Dormition "passage through death"

Assumption "ascension into heaven"

The name "Theotokos" was made official by the III Ecumenical
Council (Ephesus, 431 AD) which decreed that the Virgin should
be honored by this name which confirms the Orthodox belief in
the Incarnation: that Christ was both true God and true man. As
so often happened in those days, this action was a response to
heretical teachings that needed to be addressed. Thus, once and
for all, the Church affirmed her teachings about Christ and Mary.

Some Things To DO

Come celebrate the Feast Day in Church as a family, if not
on the day itself due to work, then at least on the eve of the
feast at Vespers if offered in your parish.

Use the section above to explain the significance of the Feast
to your children.

Use the Troparion and Kontakion hymns as prayers before and/or
after meals, and as part of the children's evening prayers during
the 8-day "afterfeast."

If you have an icon of this feast, display it in your family's
place of prayer for veneration. [Your parish bulletin might have
the icon on it.] Discuss the icon with your children so that they
are able to recognize all the figures and be able to tell the
story.

It is the custom in some parishes to bless flowers on this
Feast. Have your children pick and prepare a bouquet of flowers
to bring to the Church to be blessed. Use the flowers to decorate
an icon or the family table. Make an extra bouquet for someone
who cannot come to Church.